Clamp for placing well casings



Sept. 28, 19 48. TROTTER 2,450,388

CLAMP FOR PLACING WELL CASINGS Filed 001;. 1, 1946 Patented Sept. 28,1948 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CLAMP FOR PLACING WELL CASINGS AubreyTrotter, Lafayette, La.

Application October 1, 1946, Serial No. 700,441

2 Claims.

This invention relates to means for holding drill pipe and well casingsduring a drilling operation whereby the said casings may be held whilean operator is preparing to supply successive lengths of drill ipe andwell casings as the drilling progresses, and it is an object of thisinvention to provide a clamp which will hold a well casing or pipe whilethe derrick man is on his platform and while the pipe is about to beapplied to a hole being drilled, and it releases the :pipe as theelevators are traveling with relation to the clamp, as by the use ofthis invention the hands of the derrick man are left free for othermanipulations and the derrick man is not subjected to danger which mightotherwise be incurred if the pipe were not securely held in place.

An object of this invention furthermore is to provide an attachmentwhich is applicable to a monkey board of a derrick, and novel means areprovided for holding a pipe section while the elevator is operated, andthe said invention comprises comparatively few, inexpensive parts whichhave proven efficient and satisfactory in use, as the clamp operates tohold the pipe and of course the device may be made in different sizesfor operation on pipes of different diameters within the range of thoseusually employed in well drilling, it having been stated by the inventorthat it may be used on 2 inch to 8 inch pipes and proves eflicient inany of the sizes.

A further object of this invention is to provide a clamp having arms,one of which is stationary and the other of which is oscillativelymounted; and the invention furthermore provides for a latch removablysecured to the movable arm and so mounted that it may be actuated bythefoot of an operator for causing the engagement of the latch with themovable arm, or for disengaging the latch therefrom, so that when thelatch is holding the arm, the jaws of the clamp engage and hold a pipesection.

A still further object of the invention is to provide novel means formounting the clamp on the monkey board whereby it is movable to changeits location with respect to the hole or drilling,

operation.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists inthe details of construction, and in the arrangement and combination ofparts to be hereinafter more fully set forth and claimed.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to theaccompanying drawings forming part of this application, wherein likechar- 2 acters denote corresponding parts in the several views, and inwhich- Figure 1 illustrates a plan view of a clamp and its installationembodying the invention;

Figure 2 illustrates a view in elevation of the end of the clamp havingthe latch applied to it; and

Figure 3 illustrates a sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

In these drawings I denotes the platform on which the device isinstalled, 2 denotes a stationary arm which is rigid with a plate havingspaced lugs or ears 3 and 4, and 5 denotes a latch which has an end 6projecting over an extension 1 of the plate, and a spring 8 isinterposed between the extension of the plate and the end 6 of the latchand is operative to exert upward pressure on the end of the latch sothat the nose or lug 9 of the latch will engage an arm IU of the clamp,it being shown that the clamp has jaws II and i2 which are integral withthe arms 2 and II), respectively, The said arm I 0 crosses the arm 2 andis oscillatably connected to it by a pivot l3, which pivot extendsthrough a slot [4 of a plate l5 which is attached to the platform ormonkey board by fastenings IE, such as screws or the like.

As has been stated, the clamp is adjustable with relation to the platel5 so that the clamp may be alined more nearly with the drillingoperation.

It is obvious from the description and illustration that when themovable arm I0 is oscillated to separate the clamps, a pipe may beinterposed between the jaws thereof, and when the movable arm isoperated tocause engagement of the jaws with the pipe, the latch can bepressed down so that the lug 9 engages or partially embraces the arm andit will be held in this position with the clamp holding the pipe, thisbeing due to the action of the spring 8 which normally presses the outerend of the latch upwardly. Whenthe pipe is to be released, foot pressureon the extended portion 6 of the latch will elevate the latch out ofengagement with the arm, and the pipe is then freed for its transfer bythe usual elevating mechanism.

I claim:

1. A clamp for placing well casings, a slotted base member adapted to besecured to a derrick platform, a pivot slidable in the slot, an armsecured to the pivot and having an integral pipeengaging jaw, ananchoring plate to which the arm is connected, a movable armoscillatable on the pivot and having a jaw cooperating with the firstmentioned jaw, a latch extending transverse- 1y of the arms near theirends, means for pivotally connecting the latch in association with thestationary arm, the said latch having a lug engaging the movable arm andoperative to hold the clamp in closed position, and a spring. engagingthe latch for holding the lug in engagement with the movable arm.

2. A clamp for placing well casings, a slotted base member adapted to besecured to a derrick platform, a pivot slidable in the slot, an armsecured to the pivot and having an integral pipeengaging jaw, ananchoring plate to which the 10 arm is connected, a movable armosc'illatable on the pivot and havin a jaw cooperating with the firstmentioned jaw, a latch extending transversely of the arms near theirends, means for pivotally mounting the latch on the anchoring platewhereby one end of the latch extends beyond the pivot, a springinterposed between the extended end of the latch and the anchoring platefor holding the latch normally operative, the said latch having a lugengaging the movable arm and operative to hold the clamp in closedposition, the said clamp being operative by foot pressure to force thelatch in engagement with the movable arm and also operative by footpressure on the end of the latch to release the latch from the arm.

AUBREY TROT'I'ER.

No references cited.

